Your pain and discomfort keeps coming back because all the things you've tried never fixed the real problem.
Most people swing between slouching (A)
and over-correcting (B) their whole lives —
never discovering there's a natural middle way (C)
that fixes what's hurting.
Who knew that natural skeletal alignment lies at the heart of so many people's pain?
You've tried everything: massage, acupuncture, myofascial therapy, yoga, strength training. And yes, you feel better—for a while.
But the pain always comes back.
Here's why:
You're managing symptoms, not addressing the cause —
skeletal misalignment.
Think of it this way:
The discomfort you feel in a tight muscle or a painful nerve
often exists because the bones assigned to support your body are "out of whack."
Try building a house . . .
with the structural framing not aligned along the vertical axis.
If a house could feel pain, then doors, windows, and walls
— even plumbing and electrical systems —would all be complaining!
Your body already knows how to do this!
There's a simple path you can follow to re-establish
the lost alignment you discovered as a baby.
It's not hard to learn this! It can be fun and enlightening to get to know your body at a bone-deep level. You simply learn a handful of simple steps to follow, and almost immediately, as you apply them to yourself, you'll notice meaningful changes taking place as progress on this path builds upon itself. There's no finite destination to be reached, just a here-and-now path to keep traveling along that will serve you for the rest of your life!
I've been practicing and teaching this path for 32 years.
34 years old
SAD DOG PHASE
A sad dog tucks its tail and rounds its back.
I'm not sure by what age I had lost my natural alignment, but it was certainly well underway when I was in my teens. By the time I was in my early thirties, I was a busy mom with TMJ, who often bugged my husband to give me neck and back massages. I experienced bouts of back pain after lifting heavy things or a long day of gardening, but what I remember most vividly was feeling tight and stiff much of the time. I had been practicing yoga via Lilias Folan on PBS, and always felt much better after stretching. I was also taking aerobics classes, which I loved —yet chronic stiffness and pain were my constant companions.
.
43 years old
TENSE DOG PHASE
A tense dog lifts its chest and holds itself up with tension.
A decade later, I had become certified to teach yoga, and was also a massage therapist. Massage school opened my eyes to the intricate anatomy of the musculoskeletal system. I hadn't yet figured out that I was addicted to stretching on a regular basis. If I didn't stretch almost every day, I could count on the same old stiffness returning quickly. Yoga, itself, was not the problem but HOW I was doing it! Yet, during my extensive training, focus was always on my muscles, not my bones. It came as a shock later to discover that aligning my bones and giving up all stretching, led me to being far more naturally flexible than when I stretched. True story!
79 years old
HAPPY DOG PHASE
A happy dog wags its tail because its spine is straight and relaxed.
My life changed forever in 1994 when I met Jean Couch, who channeled the work of the late Noelle Perez of Paris, who first described principles of natural alignment. I made many treks to California from my home on the Big Island to study with Jean, and once my children were out on their own, I traveled solo for a year, seeking out people who carried heavy loads on their heads without effort and others who aged with unexpected ease into their 80s, 90s, and beyond! I've written books and taught classes and workshops all these years, and have created an online course that reaches people all over the world!
If learning this worked so well for me when I was 47,
imagine what's possible for you!
I'm turning 80 on my next birthday!
Had I not learned how to put my bones where they belong, I would not be enjoying the benefits of mechanical strength, easy mobility, and the good supply of vitality that I enjoy today. I don't do any "exercises," although I walk with a friend, work in the garden, dance around to music—all done now and then. I also carry heavy-ish duffel bags in and out of a sublime forest a few times a week, while dropping off and picking up my grandson and one of his preschool buddies.
So far, I don't struggle with getting up and down off the ground, and I believe this and my ability to squat so easily comes from the way I bend to put on my shoes, lift a heavy box, reach for a book on a high shelf — in other words: all the ways I inhabit my body that reinforce our innate human design.
Aging would look and feel very different for me now
had I not been so profoundly lucky to learn how to transform myself from first, collapsed, then overly tense, and finally, having a roadmap for how to align my bones in the course of daily life. This path continuously reinforces natural elasticity in my muscles, so I can enjoy freedom from unnecessary tension and dysfunctional movement
Turn on volume to hear the soundtrack and Click above to replay video
"Kathleen's work, to me, has been personally transformative.
I am a family physician treating my share of patients with back and neck pain, osteoporosis, and dysfunctional labor . . .
Kathleen Porter's observation of peoples around the world who retain their natural alignment, relaxation, and movement is a clear window into
the healing of the chronic pain syndromes of our culture."
Leah Morton, M.D.
Santa Fe, New Mexico
It's not hard to learn how to BE a happy, healthy skeleton
(rather than just having one)—
a skeleton that serves you well for a whole lifetime!
